The Totalization Agreement between the Czech Republic and the Republic of Belarus, signed on 14 March 2018, entered into force on 1 October 2019. An Administrative Arrangement for the implementation of the Agreement also came into force on 1 October 2019.
The treaty is based on the four basic principles that are common in modern totalization treaties and in the European Union coordinating regulations, namely:
- Equal treatment of nationals of the Contracting States
- Affiliation to insurance in the State of employment, with specific exceptions
- Aggregation of periods of insurance completed in both States for entitlement to benefits (pension)
- Payment of benefits (pensions) to the other Contracting State
The material scope of the Agreement is limited as it covers only pension insurance benefits, i.e. old-age, disability, widow’s, widower’s and orphan’s pensions in the Czech Republic, and in Belarus so-called occupational pensions, i.e. old-age, retirement, long-term, disability and for loss of the breadwinner. The Agreement shall also apply to the laws of both Contracting States governing the payment of insurance premiums. The contract does not cover sickness insurance, accidents at work and occupational diseases, unemployment benefits or health insurance.